‘All his fault’ – Micah Richards slams ‘arrogant’ senior figure in West Brom loss v Everton
Micah Richards has slammed referee Mike Dean for being “arrogant” in his decision to send West Brom manager Slaven Bilic off at half-time against Everton.
The Baggies were beaten soundly in a 5-2 defeat against the Toffees, but looked to be just about holding their own up until the point that Kieran Gibbs was dismissed at the end of the first half.
Bilic took exception to that decision and chose to take to the field at the interval to confront the official.
Dean deemed this to be a red card offence, and sent the Albion chief to the stands for the second half.
But Richards disagreed with the decision.
Speaking on Final Score (BBC One, 4.30pm, September 19th), he said: “I think it’s Mike Dean. It’s all his fault.
“Bilic is not shouting and bawling. He’s gone to Mike Dean to have a conversation with him, and just look how arrogant he’s being.
“Mike Dean is making football about himself, and he doesn’t need to do that.
“If it was Sir Alex Ferguson, if it was Pep Guardiola, if it was Jurgen Klopp, he wouldn’t have sent him off, but because it’s Bilic he’s saying ‘know your place’.”
This is a big statement from Richards, but it’s hard to disagree with him.
Ultimately, Bilic can have little complaint about Gibbs’ dismissal.
Truthfully, it was indefensible, and even the player himself has come out after the match and accepted full culpability.
But that doesn’t mean that Bilic doesn’t have the right to speak to the referee.
He wasn’t overly aggressive or abusive, and Dean shutting him down so bluntly is not exactly a great look.
The only way this will become justifiable is if it is a precedent that the referee upholds for the rest of the season.
If it isn’t, you would have to ask why Bilic was treated so harshly.
In other West Brom news, Bilic confirmed an injury blow to one of his players after the win against Harrogate.
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